Doppelgänger
by MagicMan01
Summary: When Kira decides he no longer wants to reside within Light, he materializes into the real world and decides to "help" him get rid of L, whom Light loves. After revealing his plans to murder the detective that night, Kira leaves to commit his heinous act, ignoring the cries and protests of his other half. Will Light be able to save L or will Kira win in the end? LightxL. Oneshot.


**I've been reading a lot of fan fiction and looking at a bunch of fan art recently involving Kira, and it got me thinking about something: What if Kira were an actual person? Not just Light's moniker for the godly figure he wishes to create or a state of his mind, but an actual living, breathing human being? I thought about it for a while and eventually had an idea for a story that I thought would be interesting on both an entertaining and psychological level.**

**What if Light was forced into a situation that was too far chaotic and intense for him to control? What if he knew exactly what he wanted to do and was physically capable of doing it in said situation, but **_**couldn't**_** because there was some kind of unseen force holding him back? In this story, that unseen force is Kira. Or, at least, he's unseen until he materializes into the real world, but you'll see how that actually transpires. As always, I would be very much pleased if you dropped a review at the end with your thoughts on the story!**

**Warning: Moderate violence.**

**-Disclaimer- I don't own the amazing world of Death Note, much as it would thrill me if I did.**

* * *

_**Doppelgänger**_

The date was November 5, 2004.

It was late in the evening and Light was standing in the bathroom of his suite trying to relieve a rather annoying headache. It began a couple hours ago when he and L had been in the operations room working on the Kira case as usual. It started out as a small but noticeable pain in the front of his head and had eventually spread to the rest of it, coming close to a full-blown migraine.

Maybe he'd been staring at the computer screen too long? He wasn't really sure, but what he _did _know was that this was starting to get really painful. Uncapping the bottle of pain relievers, he tipped it enough so that two capsules fell into the palm of his free hand before setting both cap and bottle onto the sink counter. Running cold water from the faucet, he fetched the glass he'd brought with him from the kitchen and filled it. Turning the water off, he downed both capsules and chased them with the glass of water.

Sighing heavily, he set the glass down on the counter and leaned over the sink, gazing into the mirror at his own reflection. God, he looked like hell. This whole act of playing an innocent teenager - when he was, in fact, anything _but_ that - was taking a toll on him. He could have sworn that he even looked a few years older from all the stress and unrest he'd gone through since coming into contact with L and having to hide his alter ego as Kira from him.

Kira...

Was Kira really his alter ego, or was he something... more? Light had never second-guessed his own sanity before, but he was seriously beginning to question it. Sometimes, he could swear that he could hear Kira talking to him or trying to contact him in some way.

Did he have dissociative identity disorder? Was he schizophrenic? Was he psychotic? Was he just paranoid?

There was clearly _something _wrong with him. Maybe he should see a psychologist about it. After all, it never hurt to have a second opinion, right?

...Actually, no. No, he was completely fine. He was Light Yagami, for God's sake! His mental history was perfect. Always had been and always would be.

Why was he doubting himself all of a sudden? This wasn't like him. He'd never had a problem with his self-esteem or confidence before, so why was he even considering the fact that he might be mentally unstable?

He just shook his head with a chuckle. Well, this was definitely out of the ordinary. Maybe some cold water would help him clear his head. Turning the faucet back on to run more water, he leaned his head down when he felt that it was cold enough and used his hands to splash some of it on his face. Turning it back off, he fumbled for a hand towel nearby and wiped his face off when he found it.

When his face was completely dry, he lowered the towel to the sink counter and opened his eyes to look back into the mirror. He jumped when he saw a second reflection beside him.

"What the hell...?" he muttered, waving his hand in front of the mirror to see if it was some sort of optical illusion.

He heard a chuckle behind him and immediately spun around a moment later after feeling a tap on his shoulder. When he saw what the other person standing in his bathroom truly looked like, he screamed and stumbled as he backed up against the sink counter.

"Ha ha ha!" the other person laughed almost maniacally. "A little jumpy there, aren't we, Light?"

Light hyperventilated as he tried to back up even further against the counter. He felt as if he were staring right at his own reflection, because the person standing in front of him looked almost exactly like him, save for the red hair and red eyes. He tried to bring his heart rate back down to a normal level but found it very difficult with the shocking revelation that a near-perfect copy of himself was right in front of him.

"W-Who the hell are you?!" he gasped out, eyes wide and body trembling in fear.

The person regarded him with a sly, almost evil expression on his face. "You should know that better than anyone else, Light. I'm _you_."

Light gasped. "W-What are you talking about?! _I'm _me!"

The person shook his head and leaned back against the wall of the bathroom, crossing his arms over his chest in a casual, nonchalant pose. "No, Light; I'm you, too. If it helps at all, I believe you called me..." the person trailed off for a moment, eyes rolling down to the floor before quickly flicking back up to Light's, "...Kira."

Light froze, skin completely draining of color. "W-What?" he breathed out just barely above a whisper.

"My name is Kira," the person carefully and slowly pronounced each word for Light to hear.

Light remained completely still in his position against the counter. _Am I going insane?! _he thought_. __Who the hell is this guy and why does he look exactly like me?! And how did he get in here without me even hearing him? And... why is he calling himself Kira?_

"L-Look, whoever you are," Light relaxed only slightly, "I swear that I don't know you. I've never seen you before in my life."

Kira sighed heavily. "Light, why can't you understand? Don't you even trust yourself? I know that you know who I am; you just don't want to admit it because it's something you can't completely accept."

"What are you saying... Kira?" Light said the last part slowly. "Are you trying to tell me that you're somehow a part of me?"

"Yes, that's _exactly _what I'm saying, Light!" Kira nodded. "All those times you heard a voice in your head talking to you? That was _me_. Every time you saw yourself with red eyes and hair in the mirror? Me again. That headache you had earlier and just took pain relievers for? That was me trying to get _out_ of you! God, you have no idea how hard that was to do..."

Light blinked. "And you... honestly expect me to believe all that?"

"Why _shouldn't _you, Light?" Kira reasoned. "I have no reason to lie to you."

Light glanced off to the side, not really sure what the hell was going on right now. His eyes returned back to Kira's a few moments later. "Well, Kira, if you're a part of me like you keep saying you are, then why are you here in my bathroom? Why aren't you inside of me like you were before?"

Kira uncrossed his arms and stepped away from the door, moving closer to Light. "Because there's something that needs to be done here, Light, and as much as I trust you with carrying out our plans for the new world, I don't think you'll be able to do it on your own. But that's okay, because I'm here to help you."

He smiled at the last part, a smile Light didn't feel very comfortable looking at. Gulping, he asked, "Help me? With what?"

Kira chuckled. "Getting rid of L, of course!"

Light gasped. What did he just say? Get rid of L?

"K-Kira... what do you mean by that?" he ventured. Light had a pretty good idea of just what Kira was implying, but he needed to hear it from the other's own lips for confirmation.

"Oh, you know what I mean, silly!" Kira laughed. "Killing him, of course! Or did you already forget about that?"

Light blanched in utter incredulity. _K-Kill L? No... no, he can't be serious! Why does he want to kill L?_

Light couldn't allow L to die... could he? No! He loved L... right? He had since they'd secretly begun seeing each other two months ago.

They hadn't gotten much past a few make out sessions in that time, but they both knew the feelings for each other were there. Light wasn't sure exactly when or why his attraction to the odd detective had begun, but from what he remembered, he had confessed his love to him one night after a particularly long day on the case. L had initially rejected his advances, saying that he wanted to keep their relationship as work partners to just strictly that, but Light eventually managed to get him to accept his love and open up to him. No one else on the task force - not even Watari or Light's father - knew about the secret relationship between its two most brilliant minds.

When Light had first learned that L was leading the investigation against him, he'd vowed to bury him if it meant achieving his goal of creating the perfect world he'd always dreamed of. He'd admired L when he was just a small boy, always wondering what it would be like to meet the world's greatest detective in person and work with him to help rid the world of injustice and evil, but when he'd determined nearly a year ago that his idol was working with the ICPO to stop him by any means necessary, he knew right then and there that he would have to kill L so the new world could begin and truly flourish.

However, everything had changed when he'd lost his memories as Kira several months ago and was handcuffed to L 24/7. L had been too oblivious to notice the long glances and many "accidental" touches Light had given him during that time, already awkward enough to sociality as it was. Light knew how he himself felt, though; he was falling for L. After L had accepted his advances and agreed to secretly become his boyfriend, everything had changed between them. He didn't doubt that L probably still suspected him of being Kira, but they were certainly much closer to each other than they had ever been before.

But if what Kira was suggesting right now were true, if he really meant what he was implying... then L was going to die. The world's greatest detective, his childhood idol, his _lover _would be taken away from him forever and he would be left alone here on Earth without him. Even if he and Kira really were able to create a new world, would he really be happy living in it without L? He knew what Kira wanted, sure, but... was it what _he_ wanted?

"Light," Kira's rough, firm voice interrupted his thoughts, "I realize you have a relationship with L, but he needs to go. As long as he's still alive, we can't create the new world we both want to live in. If you don't think you can do it, then I can do it for you, but either way, he has to die."

"W-Wait, Kira," Light held a hand up.

Maybe he could buy L some time or even persuade Kira to see things from his own point of view, but he had to choose his words carefully and think hard about what he said to him. After all, he was practically talking to himself.

"Why don't we just kidnap him or something like that and make sure no one ever finds out where he is? I'd keep constant watch over him while you perform your duties as god and continue judging criminals with the Death Note. Think about it; it could work perfectly if we just plan it right! He might even decide to join us!"

"I'm sorry, Light," Kira shook his head, "but we can't do that. He's a big enough problem as it is, and even if we kidnapped him and were somehow able to hide him away, we would jeopardize our plans even further than we already have by allowing him to live this long. But if he's dead, then he'll be completely out of the picture forever and we'll never have to worry about him ever again! The entire investigation would come to a grinding halt, we would be virtually free of suspicion, and we could carry out our plans to construct a perfect utopia for all mankind!"

"B-But, Kira-" Light began.

"Light, listen to me," Kira cut him off, stepping a foot away from him and laying a hand on his shoulder. "You may not completely understand my intentions right now, and I suppose I can understand that. But believe me, you'll thank me later when he's gone and you see just how beautiful the new world really is. You don't need L, Light. He's practically lower than the dirt beneath our shoes!

"No, when the new world is created, you can rule as a _god_. You could have anyone you want. Any woman you could ever possibly desire would be completely yours! Or any _man_, since that seems to be what you like. Hell, I won't judge."

Kira laughed for a few moments before quickly sobering and giving Light a serious look.

"But L can't be allowed to live, Light. He's too much of a liability. As long as he's still breathing, we won't be able to carry out our plans. He'll always be out there trying to hunt us down, to stop us from giving everyone on this earth the lives they deserve. He lacks the vision and integrity we have.

"He's no better than the millions of degenerate scum who inhabit this earth, the ones who slowly poison it with the bodies they don't even deserve to possess by choosing to become criminals. They're the ones who plague this beautiful planet, spreading their filthy disease to all the good people who do nothing wrong and simply wish to live properly on Earth. Once L is dead, there will be no one left to prevent us from achieving our nirvana and allowing all the good people to embrace it, while those who don't will be punished and judged by us.

"L thinks he's justice, but in reality, he's just an arrogant detective who thinks he's somehow better than everyone else. _We_ are the just ones, Light. Together, you and I will _become_ justice!"

Light felt hopeless. Everything Kira just said had once been what he wanted, what he desired for humanity and the future generations of his species to come. But he now saw the error in his ways, how the Death Note had corrupted him and shaped him into nothing more than a crazy mass murderer with a god complex. He wished he'd never picked it up that day nearly a year ago in the schoolyard. Maybe he never would have become Kira...

He shook his head and looked down at his feet. "Kira, I... I can't go through with this." He glanced back up at him, tears beginning to well up behind his eyes. "Look, I know what you're saying, and believe me, that used to be what I believed in too, but... things have changed. I don't want any of that any longer. I don't want any more blood on my hands.

"Kira, I _love _him. I know you may not understand my feelings, but I really do. He's the only person I've ever been able to relate to on so many levels and share so much in common with. You might just see him as an arrogant detective with a power trip, but beneath that rough exterior, he really is a good person. He just wants what's best for the world.

"He has his flaws, Kira, but so do I. _Everyone _does. That's what makes us all human. If you truly want to create a new world through violence and fear, then I suppose I really can't stop you, but I no longer want any part of this. Do what you will, but please... just leave me, my family and L out of it. That's all I ask."

By the time Light was finished with his heartfelt, passionate speech, Kira's confident expression had twisted into one of confusion and anger. _What the hell is he talking about?! _he thought in rage. _Why won't he just listen to me?! Well, I suppose I'll just have to do this the hard way..._

Kira gripped Light's shoulder and squeezed roughly, making the other wince in pain. He smirked maliciously and leaned in so their noses were almost touching. "Oh, come on, Light," he whispered, a deadly glint reflecting in his eyes. "You still want a new world, don't you?"

"Aah... K-Kira, that hurts..." Light winced and then yelped when his shoulder was squeezed even harder, nearly to the point of bruising.

"_Don't _you, Light?" Kira leaned in slightly closer.

"K-Kira, I already told you! I don't want a part of this anymore! Please, just let me go!"

Light tried to remove Kira's hand from his shoulder but was surprised when the other hand quickly came up to wrap around his throat, making him gag when it, too, squeezed.

"Why can't you see things from my point of view, Light? Why won't you just listen to what I have to say?"

Unable to respond, Light simply tried to remain conscious as Kira's choking hand closed tighter and tighter over his windpipe. He felt Kira's grip around his throat and shoulder briefly loosen ever so slightly before he was lifted off the ground, carried out of the bathroom, and roughly thrown down onto the floor. He tried to get up, but was quickly punched in the face by Kira, who took advantage of Light's position to sit on top of him, pinning his body underneath of his own.

Gripping Light's shirt collar and yanking him up to his level, Kira sneered into his face. "You see what you made me do, Light? Huh? You think I _enjoy _hurting you?! Just agree with me, damn it, and this can all be over!"

Light shook his head weakly, a red circle now on his cheek from where Kira had hit him. "No, Kira. I can't."

Kira growled menacingly and brought his fist upwards in a powerful uppercut, splitting Light's lip open and nearly breaking his nose. Not giving him a chance to recover, Kira relentlessly punched Light in the face. Light felt the brutal punches bruising his flesh and making it bleed, feeling the blood drip down his face. It was painful, but he wasn't going to give in to Kira. He wasn't going to submit to this evil manifestation of himself who was trying to take control of him and force him to do his bidding.

Kira eventually stopped, panting and shaking his hand out from the number of times he'd hit Light. He noticed the blood on it and looked down at Light's face, which was now covered in the same liquid. The red substance dripped down his face, staining his skin, his clothes and the carpet below him. And to think that this all could have been avoided if Light had just listened to him!

He saw his other half groan beneath him, eyes slowly opening and adjusting to the light in the room. Smirking, Kira pulled him up by the collar once more, looking directly into the innocent brown eyes with his murderous red ones.

"Now, Light," he said in an almost soothing voice as he ran a hand through his brown hair, "I apologize for what I just did to you. As I said before, I don't take pleasure in hurting you. That being said, however, I'm giving you one last chance to agree with me. What's it going to be, Light?"

Light gazed into Kira's menacing eyes, narrowing his own in defiance. "Go to hell, Kira." He spat some of the blood in his mouth at Kira, hitting him in the face.

Kira agitatedly wiped the blood off his face, sat back a little and slammed his fist into Light's jaw, dislocating it instantly. Ignoring Light's yelps and groans of pain, he got off of him to stand up and stroll into the kitchen. He quickly found a sharp knife and flipped it in his hand, pleased at the texture and feel of it. Chuckling, he walked back to Light and quickly pinned him down once more, holding the blade of the knife against his throat.

"Well, Light, I didn't want it to have to come to this, but I believe you're in need of punishment. And I think I have the oh-so perfect idea of just how to do it," he said in a very sing-song fashion, smiling wickedly at Light the whole time. "I think I'm going to find L and try this knife out on him. Cut him up, stab him through his thin body, fillet off that nice white skin of his... oh, it's going to be _fun_! Maybe I'll even record it with a camera and make you a copy of the video!"

Light's defiant expression slipped into one of utter shock and horror, eyes widening and mouth falling open. Ignoring the pain in his jaw, he gasped out, "K-Kira... No..."

Kira threw his head back and cackled wildly.

"Oh yes, Light! I'm going to take away the one you love the most in this world and give him the most agonizingly painful death I can possibly imagine! And don't even try to think about stopping me, either, because there's absolutely nothing you can do about it. It's best to just let go of him right now. Face it, Light, we were going to kill him soon anyway, so what's the harm in speeding up the process a little?"

Rising off of Light's body, Kira stood up and began making his way to the door.

Light sat up, calling out to his doppelgänger desperately. "Kira, wait!"

Kira halted, back stiffening and slowly turning to face Light. "Yes, Light?"

"Kira, please don't do this." Light got up on his knees, reaching his hands out in front of him in a pleading stance. "Please."

He felt hot tears slide down his cheeks, mixing with his blood as they fell to the carpeted floor below him. He normally wouldn't have allowed anyone else to see such emotions from him, but he could have cared less about his pride right now.

Kira smirked. "You know, I sort of enjoy seeing you this way, Light. Down on your knees, begging me like that..."

"Kira, _please_!" Light cried. "Please don't hurt him! Do whatever you want to me, but please, just... just don't hurt him! _I'm_ the one you're angry with, not him!"

"Sorry, Light, but it's too late for that," Kira shook his head, turning away from him. "This game has gone on for too long, and as you and I both know, in every game there has to be a loser. Unfortunately for L, he just so happens to be the loser in this one. That's just the way it is."

Light watched as Kira turned away and walked to the door, unlocking it with the hand not currently occupied with the knife and reaching for the handle. "Kira, _no_!" he screamed.

Without thinking, he quickly got up and ran for the door, not caring about the fact that Kira was armed and he was not. But Kira had anticipated something like this happening and quickly turned around to elbow Light in the sternum. As Light stumbled backward in pain, Kira advanced toward him and hit him in the temple with the handle of the knife while grabbing the back of his neck to hold him in place so he could knee him in the stomach. Light gasped for air as he fell to the floor, clutching his chest and reaching out for Kira. His vision blurred from the pain and tears spilling from his eyes, but he was able to make out Kira giving him one last smirk before shutting the door behind him.

"No..." Light rasped out. He had failed. L was going to die and there was nothing he could do to prevent it from happening.

Kira was going to butcher him with that knife and splatter his blood all over the walls just for the fun of it. He could almost hear L's pained screams and cries, begging for anyone to rescue him from someone who looked almost exactly like the boy he loved. He closed his eyes and curled up into himself as he sobbed, trying not to imagine how unbearably painful L's death would be.

But as he cried, he heard another voice call out to him, a voice deep inside of him. It was faint and hard to hear, but he could clearly tell it was at least there even through his pain and agony.

_Get up! _it told him. _Come on, get up and save L! Are you just going to lie there and let Kira kill him? Don't you love him?_

Light gasped. Of course he loved L!

But then... why was he lying here so pitifully? Why wasn't he trying to stop Kira? He had allowed Kira to control him since the day he'd picked up the Death Note, filling his head with absurd ideas and plans for creating some perfect world where everyone would be judged on whether or not they were worthy of life.

But no longer. It was time for this to end once and for all.

Struggling to get up, he slowly rose up on shaking legs, clutching his stomach. He took the first step toward the door, stumbling a bit. The next was a little easier. The closer he got to the door, the more balanced he became, and by the time he reached it, he was walking like normal again.

Gripping the handle, Light swung the door open, bare feet trudging along on the carpeted floor as he hurried to the elevator. He had a good idea of where L would be right now and just hoped he was able to get there before Kira did. He was taking control now. He was going to make sure Kira never hurt anyone else as long as he lived.

He'd been pathetic, allowing such a weak, despicable being like Kira to force him to do such vile things for so long. But no longer; Light was taking charge of his life. He was going to find L and protect him from Kira's wrath, even if it meant killing his other half.

_Hold on, L, _he thought desperately as he waited for the elevator to come to his floor after calling it. _Just hold on until I get there..._

* * *

Kira skipped merrily down the hall, dragging the blade of his knife against the walls as he went. He had a fairly good idea of where L would be at this time and planned to intercept him there. He was in the middle of internally debating whether he should drag L off to one of the rooms or just kill him right here in the hallway when he rounded a corner and spotted the back of the detective as he shuffled down the hall in his trademark hunch. His lips curved upward into a smirk.

_Perfect, _he thought. Gripping the handle of the knife, he began walking quickly in L's direction.

"Hey, L!" he called out.

L paused in his footsteps and turned to glance at the person calling his name. He recognized the voice as Light's - or so he thought - and was about to scold him for not using his alias out here in the open when he looked up. He gasped when he saw someone who looked _very _much like Light proceeding toward him.

He looked a lot like Light, yes, but he _couldn't _be Light. Light didn't have red hair or red eyes. And... was that a kitchen knife in his hand? What the hell was going on here?

"L-Light?" he asked incredulously as he fully turned around to face him.

Kira chuckled as he neared L. "No, L, but nice try."

"Then... who are you? And how do you know who I am?"

L took a cautious, subtle step back when the other person was less than a few feet away from him. Kira noticed this and took another step forward.

"Well, I suppose you could call me... Kira."

He smiled at the utter look of horror and shock upon L's face as he took yet another shaky step backward.

"K-Kira?" he breathed out, stumbling backward on his own feet.

"Yes, L," Kira chuckled as he brought the knife up for L to see. "I'm the one you've been looking for the whole time."

L trembled in fear at the sight of this near-perfect replica of his lover standing this close to him with that knife in his hand. His steps backward grew more hurried and frantic as he slowly tried to move away from this person who called himself Kira. But the person was able to tell exactly what he was doing and only increased the pace of his steps toward him, flipping the knife in his hand.

"It's time for you to die, L," Kira said as he raised the weapon.

L gasped and quickly turned around to break into an all-out run down the hall. He sprinted as fast as his legs could carry him, reaching into the right side pocket of his jeans for his cell phone. He had a panic button built into it and just had to press the button for Watari to receive the distress call and come to his aid. There was also an integrated GPS system in his phone that allowed Watari to know where he was at all times, even when it was turned off.

Right as he pulled his phone out and was about to hit the button, though, he felt the wind get knocked out of him from behind, causing him to lose his balance and fall to the floor, phone tumbling away from his hand and out of his reach. He felt a heavy weight upon his back and realized that Kira must have tackled him to the floor.

Kira chuckled as he quickly stood up and walked over to the phone, picking it up and waving it teasingly. "Oh, looking for this, L?" he asked mockingly as he broke it into two. "Oops! How careless of me!"

Tossing the now useless pieces of electronics and plastic away, Kira flipped the knife once more and walked back to L.

L gasped. _No! That was my only way to contact Watari! I could scream, but... no, the task force would never get here in time, and that wouldn't help them figure out what floor I was on if they even heard me. Damn it, I'm trapped!_

He crawled backwards on his hands and knees, attempting to quickly get up and run away. Kira grabbed the back of his shirt collar and tried putting him in a chokehold as he brought the knife up to his eye level. L was able to put enough distance between him and Kira before bending forward and bringing his leg up to perform a devastating _rabo de arraia_. Kira was caught unawares by the move and was sent reeling back by the strong kick to his jaw.

L used this opportunity to put as much distance between him and his attacker as he could, but he only got about ten paces away from him before he felt a sharp pain in the back of his head from Kira's fist and was sent crashing to the floor once again. Rolling onto his back, he groaned in pain and clutched the back of his head right before the other man grabbed him around the throat. L gagged as he was lifted off the floor and roughly shoved against the wall at the end of the hallway. His bare toes brushed against the carpet as Kira throttled him.

Kira grinned deviously as his grip tightened around L's throat, watching his thin body squirm in his grasp and feebly try to pry his choking hand away. L's terrified eyes met his own and he felt pleased at the knowledge that he could strike fear into the heart of the world's greatest detective this way. Speaking of hearts...

He brought the knife up to L's chest, digging the tip of the blade into the material of his white T-shirt. "I think I'll start by cutting out your heart," he said as he prepared to do just that.

L winced and shut his eyes tightly, hoping to die from a lack of oxygen instead of still being alive while slowly having his heart cut out of his chest by this maniac. But right before Kira could begin, he heard a voice behind him and paused.

"Kira!" Light's voice called out to him.

Slowly turning his head, he smirked at the brunette as he walked toward him. "Ah, came to see the show for yourself, huh Light?"

L's eyes widened when he saw his lover proceeding toward him and Kira. His face was covered in blood and he looked badly beaten, but he was still alive and walking toward him. Maybe he still had a chance after all...

_Light... _he thought.

"Let him go, Kira," Light said in a low, commanding voice.

Kira laughed. "Or what, Light? In case you've forgotten, I _do _have a knife on me. But just to refresh your memory..."

He brought the blade up to slash a small cut in L's cheek, forcing a choked yelp from his straining throat.

"Kira, stop!" Light yelled as he walked a little faster towards Kira and L.

Kira just chuckled and shook his head as he turned to face L. "Oh, Light, that's a performance worth an Academy Award right there! Unfortunately, my friend, I'm afraid you can't change fate."

He was about to thrust the blade into L's chest when he heard the sound of someone running behind him. He just rolled his eyes. This again?

Light leaped for Kira but was met with his foot in midair. He fell to the ground, spitting out blood from his mouth where the kick had struck him in the jaw. He glanced up at Kira from his position on the floor and saw him smirk down at him.

"Just sit back and enjoy, Light!" he chuckled. "No need to be so feisty!"

He returned his gaze to a barely conscious L, jabbing the tip of the knife into his delicate skin and preparing to fully stab it through. It was at this very moment that Light chose to sweep his leg out to the side, hitting Kira hard in the back of his knee. The redheaded man screamed in pain as he lost his balance and fell, dropping both L and the knife along the way. Light didn't waste a second, getting behind Kira and putting him in a powerful chokehold. He heard his double gasp for air and saw him try to reach behind him in an effort to grab at him, but only tightened the hold around his throat in response.

L sputtered and gasped for breath as he slowly opened his eyes, gradually sitting up against the wall. He felt the sore red ring around his throat from Kira's choking hand and saw the same person being held down by Light less than five feet away.

"L-Light..." he was able to rasp out, coughing as the simple act irritated his bruised esophagus.

Light's eyes met L's and he used his legs to pin Kira's down to the floor as he felt them try to kick him. "Run, L!" he shouted. "Get the hell out of here!"

L was still for a moment, taking in what Light had just said to him. His mind was still a little fuzzy from the lack of oxygen, and even though he heard Light use his actual name in place of his alias "Ryuzaki," he didn't really care about that right now - he just wanted to know what the hell was going on.

Noticing L's lack of acknowledgement, Light shouted, "I'll hold him off, L! Just go! Get out of here while you still can!"

L shook his head resolutely, now realizing what Light was implying. "No, Light!" he replied hoarsely. "I can't leave you here with him!"

Light was about to shout a retort at him when Kira drove his elbow hard into his ribs, causing him to loosen his grip around his throat as he gasped for breath. Half a second later, Kira used the back of his head to deliver a sickeningly effective headbutt to Light's face, making him fully release him. He took the advantage and slid backwards into Light's chest as hard as he could, slamming the brunette's body against the wall behind him. He groaned in pain and slumped against the wall, eyes clouded by white dots as he drifted on the edge of consciousness.

L gasped when he saw Kira break free and looked up when he quickly rose to his feet. He stood up as fast as he could, but Kira grabbed him by the hair harshly, causing him to yelp in pain. Kira used his tight grip in L's black hair to yank him forward, their faces mere inches apart.

"Nighty night, L," he whispered before slamming the back of his head into the wall.

A sickening thud was heard as L's head connected with the wall, cracking the plaster and leaving a small hole in it from the force of the impact. L's motionless body crumpled to the floor as Kira released him and turned around to look down at Light. He was gaping at the sight of his lover lying completely still on the floor, eyes slowly traveling up Kira's body to lock them with his own. He narrowed them in fury.

"Kira, you _bastard_!" he cried as he launched himself at Kira's midsection.

This time, Kira wasn't fully prepared for the blow and just barely had time to grab Light's shoulders before his momentum sent them both crashing to the ground. Light recovered quickly and was able to break Kira's nose with a potent jab before he cried out in pain as the other's fist connected with the same area of his ribs that he'd been elbowed in earlier.

Flipping them over, Kira grabbed Light by the collar and tried to hit him again. Light was faster, though, and brought an arm up to block his face from the attack while simultaneously punching Kira right below the eye, causing him to fall back and off of him from the force of the blow. Light threw himself on top of Kira, pinning his arms and legs down before noticing the knife still lying on the floor. Reaching for it while avoiding Kira's flailing arms, he grasped it firmly in one hand before returning to the redhead beneath him.

Kira gasped when he saw the knife in Light's hand. "Wh-What are you doing with that, Light?" he asked, though he very well knew the answer.

"Like you said to me earlier, Kira," he said just barely above a whisper as he raised the knife above his head, "you should know that better than anyone else. I'm taking you out of this world forever, you sick son of a bitch."

"L-Light, stop!" Kira cried out. "You don't know what you're doing!"

But Light wasn't to be deterred. "Yes I do, Kira," he growled out as he gripped the knife tightly in both hands right before driving it down to Kira's heart. "It's time for you to die!"

"_No_!" Kira shouted as he reached up, trying desperately to stop Light from stabbing him. But it was much too late.

"_GET OUT OF MY LIFE_!" Light screamed at the top of his lungs as the knife pierced Kira's heart, blood splattering the contrasting colors of the silver colored blade and his tan hand.

Kira gasped for breath and spluttered for but a moment, choking on his own blood. His body then went still, hands falling to his sides from their positions in the air and his head lolled back to the floor. He was dead within mere moments.

Light panted heavily, fingers and palms still tightly wound around the handle of the knife. As the adrenaline rush slowly wore off, it took him a few seconds to realize that he had just killed someone, that he had stabbed a man right through the heart with something that was meant to be used to prepare food in a kitchen. His skin blanched completely white and he cried out in horror, quickly releasing the knife and scurrying backwards against the adjacent wall. He hyperventilated at the sight of the corpse in front of him, knife still stuck through its chest and allowing blood to freely spill from the wound.

He had to keep reminding himself that he'd killed him in self-defense, that he had had absolutely no other option but to eliminate Kira to protect himself.

_You didn't have any other choice, _he thought. _It's not murder; you killed him because it's what you had to do to survive. It was either him or you. You did it to save yourself and L._

Light gasped when that name came to mind, whipping his head to the side to glance at the other person lying motionless on the floor. "L!"

He quickly crawled over to him, sitting against the wall and cradling his frail body in his lap. "Jesus..." he breathed when he closely inspected L's injuries.

Besides the small gash in his cheek, his throat was completely red from where Kira had choked him. He also saw a small amount of blood trickling down from the back of his head. Light glanced up at the small hole in the wall and remembered that Kira had slammed the back of his head into it.

Glancing back down at the unconscious detective, Light ran a hand through his dark hair and held him close to his own body. "L..." he whispered. "L, please wake up. Please, L..."

He felt tears drip down his face, falling onto L's white shirt. This was all his fault. If only he'd stopped Kira back in his room, he wouldn't have gotten to L and damn near killed him.

"L, I'm so sorry," he sobbed softly, brushing the bangs out of L's eyes. "I didn't mean for this to happen to you..."

However, he soon ceased weeping when he heard L groan and slowly open those large, dark eyes of his. He gasped and waited for L's eyelids to slide fully open, revealing a pair of black orbs that were staring up into his own brown ones.

"Light..." he softly called up to him.

"Shh, L," Light soothed, leaning down to plant a kiss upon his lips. He released him and brushed a thumb over his cut cheek, gently wiping away the blood trickling from the wound. "Just stay still, okay? You just got your head smashed against a wall pretty hard and you might have a concussion."

But L was more concerned with the mysterious figure lying off to the side on his back with a knife stuck through his chest. He glanced at the figure for a moment before allowing his eyes to return to Light.

"W-What happened, Light?" he asked. "Who is he? Why was he trying to kill us?"

Light gave him a small, humorless smile. "Don't worry, L. I'll explain everything to you once you get some medical attention. Right now, just relax and try not to move or talk too much, all right?"

L was about to protest, but he looked down the hall when he heard the telltale ding of an elevator door. Light looked ahead as well and breathed out a heavy sigh of relief when he saw Watari, his father, and the rest of the task force quickly exit the elevator. He waved his hands and called out to them, getting their attention almost immediately as they rushed down the hall towards him and L.

The battered detective glanced up at Light. "I know you advised me not to talk, Light, but... how did they know we were here?"

Light chuckled. "No, that's okay; it's a valid question, I suppose. I happened to have my cell phone on me and called them right before I got here."

He winced as soon as he was finished, softly cursing under his breath at the sudden pain in his jaw. He was pretty sure Kira had relocated it when he'd kicked him earlier, but it still hurt like hell. He'd have to have it looked at later...

L nodded. "Ah, I see-" he began before Light placed a finger upon his lips.

"Shh," he gently shushed him, removing his finger to replace it with his lips. "Don't talk, remember?"

L opened his mouth to do just that before remembering Light's wish and slowly closed it, giving him a small, barely noticeable smile as the task force neared both of them. Light heard their surprised gasps and murmurs at the sight of Kira's body as they got to him and L, but he ignored them for the time being.

L was safe and that was all that mattered. Kira was dead and would never kill again; he'd made damn sure of that when he'd driven the blade of that knife straight through his heart. He had a feeling that he would have a rather difficult time trying to explain exactly how this had all happened to L and the rest of the group later on, but right now, he wasn't going to worry about that. Right now, he was just going to sit here with L and remind himself of how much he loved him as the task force tended to them.

* * *

**Kira sort of ended up being more like Beyond Birthday by the end of this oneshot than I wanted him to, but... ah, oh well. They both despise L and enjoy using knives, so what's the difference? Ha ha ha. Oh, and in case you didn't notice, the date upon which this story takes place - November 5, 2004 - is the date on which L and Watari die in the manga. I did this for a reason, but I'm sure you can figure that one out easily enough...**

**A/N: I'm a little unsure concerning the kind of kick that L uses against Kira when he initially tries to get away from him. I took a few years of karate and am somewhat familiar with techniques employed in martial arts, but seeing how I've never taken capoeira, I'm a little shaky on the terms and whatnot. All I know from Internet research is that there are two versions of an **_**armada **_**kick in capoeira and that one of them, the **_**rabo de arraia**_**, seems very similar to the kind of kick L uses against Light when they're handcuffed together in Misa's suite earlier on in the series.**


End file.
